Having spent a good deal of time with the Early Access release of Larian's Divinity: Original Sin II, we've put together a detailed, two-page preview that seeks to share the RPG sequel's strengths and weaknesses, while also comparing and contrasting it to its predecessor. A sampling:

Character development works about the same in Original Sin II as it did in Original Sin. Each time you gain a level, you receive points to spend on attributes (Strength, Finesse, Intelligence, Constitution, Memory and Wits), abilities (including Dual-Wielding, Warfare, and Persuasion), and / or talents (including Glass Cannon, Hothead, and Pet Pal). The attributes, abilities and talents look similar to what was available in Original Sin, but they've been reworked, so you have to pay attention to what they do now versus what they did before.

For example, previously the more points you put into the Scoundrel ability, the more Scoundrel skills you unlocked, and the better those skills worked, and so the ability was only useful for Scoundrel characters. But now you only need one point in the Scoundrel ability to unlock Scoundrel skills, and otherwise the ability just affects your combat multiplier and your movement speed. Similarly, there's a Necromancer ability, but its prime bonus is that it allows you to leech health based on the amount of damage you do. As a result, way more abilities are relevant for each character, and so you have way more options for character development, which is great.